1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to building assemblies having standing seam roofs, and more particularly but not by way of limitation, to an improved method and apparatus for assembling a standing seam metal roof.
2. Brief Statement of the Prior Art
The pre-engineered building industry has developed into a multi-billion dollar segment of the building construction industry in the United States, and it has experienced an increasingly greater share of the construction industry budget throughout the world. The established method of erecting the roof of a pre-engineered building is to erect the primary structural members; attach the secondary structural members to the primary structural members; secure the appropriate bracing members; roll blanket-type insulation across the secondary structural members; dispose roof panel members over the insulation; and connect the roof panel members to each adjacently disposed roof panel member and to the secondary structural members.
Numerous types of roof assemblies have heretofore been proposed for a pre-engineered building in an effort to provide a watertight roof assembly, while at the same time enabling the roof assembly to expand and contract as changes in temperature are encountered. Typical of such a prior art roof assembly which has met with considerable success in recent years is the standing seam roof assembly. The panel members of the standing seam roof assembly are joined to each other along adjacent sides such that the sides are lapped together to form the standing seams. The panel members of the standing seam roof are secured to the secondary structural members by means of clips. The interconnection of the panel members of the standing seam roof lend stiffness and strength to the roof structure, while allowing the roof structure to expand and contract as a function of the coefficient of expansion of the materials of which the roof panels are made and the temperature cycles to which the roof panels are exposed.
The repeated action of expansion and contraction on the panel members of the roof assembly tends to weaken the panel-to-panel-to-lap joint and thus often causes panels to seperate, structural failure and leaks in the roof assembly. The leaks are generally caused by the weakening of the fastening members and working or kneading of the sealant used at the joints. In many of the prior art roof assemblies, the sealant employed required adhesion, flexibility and water repellency. Further, the design of the joint was in many instances such that the pressure on the sealant varied greatly throughout the length of the sidelap and endlap joints of the panels and resulted in uneven distribution of the sealant and voids in the joints which frequently led to leaks.
Many of the before-mentioned problems encountered in the prior art standing seam roof assemblies, such as structural failures and leaks, have been overcome by the improved standing seam metal floating roof assembly disclosed in copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 425,477, filed Sept. 28, 1982, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,497,151. The standing seam floating roof assembly of the before-mentioned copending patent application is formed of elongated metal panels, each of which is provided with a female member formed along one side portion of the panel and a male member formed along the opposed side portion of the panel such that adjacent panels are interlocked with the female and male members thereof to form the standing seam. A clip having a slidable upper portion is secured between the standing seam of the roof assembly and the secondary structure such that the upper portion of the clip is disposed between the male and female members of the panels forming a standing seam. The clip is further constructed so that relative motion between the clip and the metal panels is substantially prevented. To assist in the watertightness of the standing seam a resilient material is disposed in the upper portion of the standing seam between the female member and the male member.
The structure and features of the improved standing seam floating roof assembly disclosed in the before-mentioned patent application achieves the objective of providing an improved watertight standing seam floating roof assembly wherein the resilient material is clamped between adjoining male and female members of the panels without the aid of a field-seaming machine or the necessity of assembling and rotating the panel being assembled into a pre-designated position. However, problems may nevertheless be encountered due to human involvement in the construction of the standing seam roof assembly, especially in the formation of a watertight, quality-consistent standing seam by the union of the male member of one panel with the adjacently disposed female member of a second panel. Thus, it is desirable to provide a method and apparatus for assembling such standing seam roof assemblies which substantially eliminates human error encountered in the formation of the standing seam by the union of adjacent roof panels via the male and female members of the standing seam, and which enables one to more readily provide for proper alignment of the male and female members of the standing seam and provide improved standing seam joint integrity.